Ig Dms
Tony,
What I think you are seeing is the oil / lube in the hub doing what I call 'cold aging'. When I tested well known, as well as some obscure, cold weather greases in our cryogenic freezer at the U of A....many would do fine at -70dF the first 12 hours - with some signs of hardening but still mobile. After 24, 36 and 48 hours they would show their true cold-weather qualities...many going to 'rock'...but only after time.
As an expedition style rider...I'm looking for lubes that DON'T 'cold age'...for obvious reasons...we are out on the trail continuously. I also don't bring my bikes in warm storage during extreme cold weather...which, as you know, is most of the winter. If they must be brought into the shop for maint., they stay in until completely defrosted and temps equalize across the whole bike. Only then will I deep freeze them again. I think this can also cause some real problems with internal geared hubs...condensation in the gear case as most are not completely oilfilled. Even a little frozen water from condensation buildup inside ur hub is death. If you are bringing ur internal in and out in the cold you might consider venting that hub somehow...Rohloffs are easy - just open up the fill screw/plug and let it equalize like the rest of the bike.
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NON IG DMS
While the internal geared hubs are nice...they are the opposite of what I'm looking for in an expedition bike...simplicity. Fixed SS is simplest...yes we do ride fixed ss fatbikes. However, I also recognize the need for multiple gears and gears that are able to change without the time and complexity of varying wheel positions on a horizontal dropout...thus far, 3 gears (two riding and one bailout) on a tensioned and wrapped chain (as pictured) are working v.well. You must know the conditions and how they relate to your bike setup as well as your own physical capacities...it also helps to carry an extra cog or two which are relatively easy to change-out if any of the above change.
anthony.delorenzo said:
The hub is serviceable but nowhere near as easy as the Rohloff... Officially it should be the shop that does it. I'm not sure I want to be tearing one of these apart.
Based on another ride yesterday, it seems like below -30 C is about the point where you start developing issues. I had a bit of slow engagement, but otherwise mine worked and shifted fine. The wife's hub stopped shifting again, although I am thinking this may be a cable issue, like you said.
She commutes on hers and stores it inside. Neither of us plan on doing much recreational riding at those temps. If I were in the Iditarod I would have to figure out a solution, but for this season at least I think we'll just deal with it. Maybe I'll try servicing the hubs over the summer.
